Sunset kayak trip

Okay, imagine this. It’s late afternoon, and you’re out on the water in a kayak. You enter a mangrove tunnel – the roots and brush catch your paddle each time you miss a turn – and if you look up, you can see the most amazing groupings of spiders and webs you’ll ever want to see.

From time to time, herons, egrets, osprey and kingfishers fly by on their way to new fishing. You can hear the occasional cicada amidst the birdcalls, too.

The water is smooth and cool, with bugs flying in the air and on the surface of the water. A little ways off, you see a silvery fish flipping itself up into the air for some reason known only to itself.

The only sounds are those of the paddles, dipping, dipping. There is a break in the mangrove, and you join the other kayaks in a large lake – at the far end is a large tree where you see many different types of fishing birds landing to roost for the night. The kayakers gather to watch the sunset and slap mosquitoes. Dark falls, and the guide hands out headlamps, and attaches glowsticks to the back of each kayak – you follow each other back through the tunnels with only headlamps lighting the way. Spider webs brushing your faces – mosquitoes buzzing – and a full moon occasionally peeking through the clouds to light the waters before you.

I think I’ve just had one of the most memorable experiences of my long and adventurous life.